Retirement of a thousand cuts continues

This just in from the Met press office: “On the advice of his doctors, James Levine will reduce his conducting dates at the Met for the rest of the current season while he continues to recover from recent procedures to alleviate back pain. His planned performances of Das Rheingold on March 30 and April 2 will be conducted by Fabio Luisi, while those of Il Trovatore on April 20, 23, 27, and 30 will be conducted by Marco Armiliato.

“Levine will conduct upcoming performances of Wozzeck (April 6, 9, 13. and 16), the new production of Die Walküre (April 22, 25, 28, May 2, 5, 9, and 14), and two concerts with the MET Orchestra at Carnegie Hall (April 10 and May 15) as scheduled.”

La Cieca now predicts the order of cancellations of these remaining performances: Met Orchestra April 10, Wozzeck (most likely all of them), Walküre (all or most, announced one performance at a time.)

Note: this is not gloating; this is thinking realistically and unsentimentally about a huge millstone Levine has laid around the Met’s neck. The Boston Symphony had the balls to cut him loose; may we not hope that the maestro will do the right thing and spare his beloved home company the destructive dissension and strife that will result if they have to make that first move to get him out the door?

Another point about Luisi’s contract -- I assume that Luisi was signed by Alexander Pereira before Pereira lfft to take over the Salzburg Festival. I wonder if Andres Homoki, who is taking over as Intendant, would let Luisi out of his contract in order to bring in his “own” GMD?

Marcello

Luisi was signed by Homoki -- they start simultaneously.
Pereira was left without a musical director when Welser-Moest left for Vienna (it seems that the two did not get along too well and that W-M could not stand Pereira’s girlfriend, who is about 40 years his junior). Anyway, Pereira then signed Daniele Gatti for the 3 remaining seasons of his tenure. In his 2nd season in Zurich, Gatti has just last Sunday conducted his first new production (Falstaff), with Parsifal, Meistersinger, Otello and Mathis der Maler to follow.

Marcello

40 years younger than Pereira, not W-M.

A. Poggia Turra

Marcello -- thanks for the clarification -- I think I must have been conflating the Gatti and Luisi singings.

Is it fair to assume that in Europe, an incoming Intendat or Intendatin customarily selects his or her own GMD? I seem to remember (corrections welcome) that when the former Intendant of Hannover took over in Stuttgart, he brought with him his Hannover GMD, and that the Stuttgart orchestra hated the conductor in question.

A. Poggia Turra

“signings”, not “singings” :D

(talk about a Freudian schlepp)

Lucky Pierre

i had a few questions about the boris godunov i saw last week.

in the prologue, what is the object that someone (pimen?) offers up to boris but he doesn’t accept (i was in the rear orchestra and couldn’t see waht was going on).

what was shuisky’s mission in marina’s court in act III?

who is the young-looking boyar with long hair in the duma council scene (before boris appears), i even thought it was pape. looking for the character and singer.

spasiba.

m. croche

Here’s a link to a translation of Pushkin’s play. This should clear up a number of plot points for you: